Early Days in the British Motor Cycle Industry - A Brief History of the Years Before the Arrival of the Motor Cycle Press

Eric W. Walford

Description

Originally published in 1931. A well illustrated history of the British Motor Cycle Industry. Detailed chapters include: The Era of the Pioneers – The Era of Financial Adventurers – The Era of the Motor Tricycle – The Era of the Motor Bicycle.
Many of the earliest motoring books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Home Farm Books are republishing many of these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Sujets

• Pictorial
• Motorcycles
• Transportation

Informations

• Publié par: Read Books Ltd.
• Date de parution: 06 septembre 2016
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781473351936
• Langue: English

Extrait

EARLY DAYS
in the
BRITISH MOTOR CYCLE INDUSTRY
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE YEARS BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF THE MOTOR CYCLE PRESS
By
ERIC W. WALFORD, M.I.A.E.
Published under the authority of
T HE B RITISH C YCLE M OTOR C YCLE M ANUFACTURERS AND T RADERS U NION L TD ., T HE T OWERS , W ARWICK R OAD , C OVENTRY .
Copyright 2013 Read Books Ltd. This book is copyright and may not be reproduced or copied in any way without the express permission of the publisher in writing
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Motorcycling
Motorcycling can be a hobby, a sport, a mode of transport or a fashion statement - though for most people in the world, motorcycling is the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation.
Statistically, there is a large difference between the cardominated developed world, and the more populous developing world, where cars are less common than motorcycles. In the developed world, motorcycles are frequently owned in addition to a car, and thus used primarily for recreation or when traffic density means a motorcycle confers travel time or parking advantages as a mode of transport. In the developing world a motorcycle is more likely to be the primary mode of transport for its owner, and often the owner s family as well. It is not uncommon for riders to transport multiple passengers or large goods aboard small motorcycles and scooters - simply because there is no better alternative.
The simplicity demanded of motorcycles, coupled with the high volume of sales possible makes them a profitable and appealing product for major manufacturers - who go to substantial lengths to attract and retain market share. Of all the motorcycles in the world, 58% are in the Asia Pacific and Southern and Eastern Asia regions, excluding car-centric Japan. In the developed world, motorcycling goes beyond being just a mode of motor transportation or sport. It is also leisure activity and numerous subcultures and lifestyles have evolved around the use of motorcycles. Although mainly a solo activity, motorcycling can be very social and motorcyclists tend to have a strong sense of community.
There are many reasons for riding a motorcycle, for most riders, a motorcycle is a cheaper and more convenient form of transportation which causes less commuter congestion within cities and has less environmental impacts than automobile ownership. Others ride as a way to relieve stress and to clear their minds as described in Robert M. Pirsig s book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance . Pirsig contrasted the sense of connection experienced by motorcyclists with the isolation of drivers who are always in a compartment , passively observing the passing landscape. The connection to ones motorcycle is sensed further, as Pirsig explained, by the frequent need to maintain its mechanical operation.
Speed is another large factor which draws many people to motorcycling, because the power-to-weight ratios of even low-power motorcycles rivals that of an expensive sports car. The power-to-weight ratio of many modestly priced sport bikes is well beyond any mass-produced car. Hunter S. Thompson s book Hell s Angels includes an ode to the joys of pushing a motorcycle to its limits, with the throttle screwed on there is only the barest margin, and no room at all for mistakes . . . that s when the strange music starts . . . fear becomes exhilaration [and the] only sounds are the wind and a dull roar floating back from the mufflers and T. E. Lawrence wrote of the lustfulness of moving swiftly and the pleasure of speeding on the road. A sensation he compared to feeling the earth moulding herself under me . . . coming alive . . . and heaving and tossing on each side like a sea.
About 200 million motorcycles, including mopeds, motor scooters, motorised bicycles, and other powered two and three-wheelers, are in use worldwide, or about 33 motorcycles per 1000 people. By comparison, there are about 1 billion cars in the world, or about 141 per 1000 people, with about one third in service in Japan and the United States. Despite their popularity, motorcycles do pose significant risks however. The relative risk of a motorcycle rider being killed or seriously injured per kilometre travelled was around 54 times higher in Great Britain in 2006 than for car drivers. United States Department of Transportation data for 2005 showed that for passenger cars, 18.62 fatal crashes occur per 100,000 vehicles. For motorcycles this figure is 75.19 per 100,000 vehicles - four times higher than for cars.
To address motorcycle safety issues, motorcycle-specific training and personal protective equipment is important for motorcyclists survival on the road, and mandated in many countries and several U.S. states and counties. Helmet usage reduces the chance for death in an accident by 40% and the risk of serious injury by 70%. While helmet usage generally is increasing world-wide and 77% of the worlds population is covered by extensive helmet laws, many countries still lack sufficient enforcement. Pakistan has both laws requiring driver and passenger to wear a helmet and regulations on helmet standards - but still, only 10% of all riders in Pakistan wear a helmet.
Motorcycling lifestyles have been adopted by many different groups spanning nations and cultures. They include commuters, mainstream motorcycle clubs such as long-distance riding clubs, adventurer touring, trail riding and those involved with motorcycle sports, such as motocross riding, drag racing, circuit racing and trick or stunt enthusiasts. Around the world, motorcycles have historically been associated with highly visible subcultures (such as the scooter riders and cafe racer riders of the 1950s and 60s in Great Britain), and they often are seen as inhabiting the fringes of society. Numerous books about motorcycle subcultures have been written, including Hunter S. Thompson s (previously mentioned) Hells Angels , Lee Gutkind s Bike Fever , and Daniel R. Wolf s The Rebels . There are also several outlaw motorcycle gangs , occasionally getting in trouble with the law, such as the Pagans, Hells Angels, Outlaws MC, and Bandidos - known as the Big Four.
Motorcycling is a truly fascinating means of transport, with fans and adherents spread out all over the globe. It is hoped that the reader enjoys this book on the subject, and is maybe inspired to try some motorcycling for themselves.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

The Butler Tricycle
The first motor bicycle, built by Gottlieb Daimler in 1885
Another construction of Daimler s motor bicycle
A tricycle built by J. D. Roots
The first De Dion tricycle (French)
The Hildebrand Wolffmuller motor bicycle of 1895
A diagram showing the details of the Hildebrand Wolffmuller machine
The motor bicycle built by Colonel Holden
One of the notorious Pennington motor bicycles
Another Pennington machine, a tandem
A fantastic illustration published by Pennington
A British-built tricycle with De Dion type engine
Rear view of the 1 1/4-h.p. Beeston tricycle
A Beeston two-seater motor cycle of 1898
Beeston 1 3/4-h.p. motor bicycle
Perspective view of the Boll e
A tandem motor bicycle driven by an electric motor and accumulators
Coventry Motette lady s motor bicycle
M.M.C. tricycle manufactured by the Motor Manufacturing Co
The Ariel tricycle
The Ariel quadricycle
Bath-chair type of motor cycle built by the Rover Co
Sectional view of surface carburettor
Probably the first tricar
Swift motor tricycle of 1899
Shaw motor bicycle
Singer motor bicycle
Singer s motor wheel fitted to a tricycle
Gibson motor bicycle
Humber tricycle adopting the Phelon Moore system
Raleigh front-wheel drive motor bicycle
The Royal Enfield motor bicycle of 1901
A typical machine fitted with 1 1/4-h.p. Minerva engine and fittings
A plan view of a motor cycle of 1902
A composite sketch showing the Quadrant single-lever control
The new type Werner motor cycle
Diagrams of manufacturers ideas of engine position
A built-up machine of high power made by F. J. Osborn
A typical motor cycle acetylene lamp
The first Triumph motor bicycle fitted with a 2-h.p. Minerva engine
A belt-driven Matchless motor bicycle
The first Phelon Moore motor bicycle
A Humber motor bicycle of 1902
A motor bicycle built in 1902 by Mr. W. Hillman of Coventry
The Rex motor bicycle
The first Scott motor bicycle with 2-stroke engine mounted high up in the frame
Coventry Eagle motor bicycle fitted with an M.M.C. engine and shown towing a trailer
Royal Enfield motor bicycle of 1903
INDEX.

C HAPTER I.
T HE E RA OF THE P IONEERS
C HAPTER II.
T HE E RA OF F INANCIAL A DVENTURERS
C HAPTER III.
T HE E RA OF THE M OTOR T RICYCLE
C HAPTER IV.
T HE E RA OF THE M OTOR B ICYCLE
FOREWORD
by
SIR EDWARD ILIFFE, C.B.E.

T HE first beginnings of what ultimately becomes a great accomplishment are nearly always difficult to trace. They are never deliberately recorded at the time, but are left to record themselves, and the records are of necessity disconnected and uncertain. The motor cycle industry has been no exception. Therefore I welcome this account of its early days and the privilege of writing a brief foreword to it. The subject is itself interesting and, as an achievement which in the main is British, well deserves a history. It is fitting that that history should appear under the gis of the British Cycle and Motor Cycle Manufacturers and Traders Union, which has done so much to place the British industry in the commanding position which it now occupies in the world s markets; and equally fitting has been the selection of historian.
Most of those whose memory allows them to recall the closing years of the last century think of the motor cycle as a machine which first came into prominence when the Boer War was nearing its end; and, as we know, motor cy